Lipid myopathy. Case report and review.

The past decade has seen an increasing number of reports of patients suffering from disorders of lipid with major abnormalities of the neuromuscular system. On the basis of these reports it has been suggested that carnitine deficiency can be subdivided into a myopathic form where the deficiency is confined to muscle and a systemic form where there is more wide-spread carnitine depletion. Recent evidence based on clinical and experimental material casts doubt on this rigid subdivision. It is suggested that patients with carnitine deficiency should not be rigorously subdivided until further clarification of the underlying biochemical abnormalities have been undertaken.